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Matt Davis — Need2Know Chedditor

Table of Contents

• Meta's New AI-gent Will Do Stuff for You

• Dorchester Hotel Sells Sheikh's Car Over Unpaid Bi …

• So Long, Then, LIV Golf, We Hardly Knew Ya

• Washington Slams Ford for Chinese Connections

• How Hershey Is Selling Fancy Chocolate to Gen Z

• Poll of the Day: It’s World-Famous-575™ Time

• Poll of the Day: AI, AI, AI

What’s the Stock Market Up To, Eh?

$SPX ( ▼ 0.58% )  $DJI ( ▼ 0.6% )  $NDX ( ▲ 1.59% )  

Companies Mentioned in Today’s Newsletter

$META ( ▼ 1.42% )  $F ( ▲ 3.2% )  $HSY ( ▲ 1.25% )  

Meta's New AI-gent Will Do Stuff for You

Meta $META ( ▼ 1.42% ) is taking AI a step further with Muse, a personal AI agent for adults designed to handle day-to-day tasks. It can also turn "long-term goals into action plans," assuming you have any goals. Other than "avoid a robot eating my lunch," of course. 

Muse is a standalone app or you can use it in WhatsApp. It doesn't only answer questions. It actually does things for you, from booking travel to sending emails. It can even launch a new business! (*So says Meta. Although I’m curious to hear from anyone who actually does that with it!)

I downloaded the app and gave it a try. It failed to book a restaurant for my birthday after the Resy browser crashed on it a couple of times. But I enjoyed using it. It made me give my agent a nickname. I chose "Clocky." Because it will save me time, and obscenities aren't allowed. 

Traditional chatbots are passive. But Meta says, "once a person shares a goal with muse, it helps them develop a plan." It will also coordinate your time and resources, opening browser tabs. It will fill out forms. It will even haggle on your behalf while you take a nap. 

This all fits into Mark Zuckerberg's vision of "universal AI superintelligence." Remember that huge 6,500-word essay he put on the internet? The one he promises he wrote himself? This was part of it. Your agent will try to improve your relationships. Best of luck with that. It'll try to improve your health. Best of luck with that. Finances. Home management. Hobbies. Best of…ah, never mind.

The goal is to "free up time for the things you enjoy, and help you do more than you could otherwise." So says Zuck himself. Meta is also stressing safety and privacy, because as we all know, its platforms always do that. Especially when they're trying to hook teens. Too soon? 

Let me know how the Muse strikes you!

Quote of the Day

Dorchester Hotel Sells Sheikh's Car Over Unpaid Bill

Ah, the Dorchester Hotel. I had an old relative who was a psychic. He drove a gold Rolls-Royce around and was in Life Magazine in 1967 next to an article on The Beatles. He met his lover in an elevator at the Dorchester. It was illegal to be gay back then, but that didn't bother them. Then, when they'd broken up, he met his next lover in the same elevator. Stephen Fry played him in a biopic based on the life of Peter Sellers, his most famous client. But tell me, what's your Dorchester Hotel story? I'm sure it's almost as interesting. 

Qatari royal Sheikh Nasser bin Abdullah al-Thani also loves The Dorchester. So much so that he's run up a £458,000 bill there, comprising room charges, extra fees, and interest. The sheikh failed to attend a court hearing on the matter, so a British judge ruled in favor of the hotel. He even authorized them to seize and sell his car to recoup funds. 

The vehicle on the chopping block is a 2011 Fiat 500 Abarth Tributo Ferrari. It's a compact city hatchback accented with racing stripes. It will sell for £23,500, or less than 5% of the outstanding amount. But it's the thought that counts. 

The sheik's Instagram profile flaunts a lavish lifestyle. His legal team insisted to the Financial Times, “Sheikh Al Thani has only recently become aware of these proceedings." The sheikh also disputes the amount owed, and the nature of the proceedings. Meanwhile, The Dorchester — owned by the Brunei Investment Agency — declined to comment. That’s the stiff upper lip at work, I expect.

So Long, Then, LIV Golf, We Hardly Knew Ya

LIV Golf has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection before the 2027 season. After burning through cash at over $100 million per month, the Saudis pulled funding. 

Despite losing its main financial lifeline, LIV’s leadership tried to project calm. CEO Scott O’Neil insisted that “a lot of that angst, a lot of discord, and a lot of frustration” had been “washed away.” 

Just like the remains of Jamal Khashoggi. Say, what happened to that guy, anyway?

Rival PGA Tour's Rory McIlroy gave advice to golfers left stranded by LIV. “If you want to be the most competitive golfer you can be, this is the place to be," he said. "And if you don’t want to play here, I think that says something about you."

No judgement, of course. LIV's liabilities tower between $500 million and $1 billion. It also leaves behind unpaid vendor lawsuits, canceled tournaments, and players owed millions. Still, LIV insists it plans to play another season. It insists on it. I’m holding my breath!

Song of the Day: Medium Build, ‘It’s Not Easy, Falling In Love’

Here’s a highly effective, radio-ready cautionary tale about the emotional risks and complexities of romance. So, it’s a lot like this newsletter.

Washington Slams Ford for Chinese Connections

Ford Motor Company $F ( ▲ 3.2% ) got a stern warning from Washington. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote to the firm to share "profound concern" about its ties to China. The letter called out Ford's battery licensing deal with Chinese firm CATL. 

Duffy reminded Ford about "American national automotive manufacturing integrity, supply chain exposure, and reliance on technologies of foreign adversaries." He said Ford's moves "paint a troubling picture of a foundational American brand actively intertwining its future with Chinese state-backed enterprises."

Ford, meanwhile, is evidently quaking in its shoes. It called the letter a "wrongheaded attempt to capture headlines" marred by "factual errors."

Touting its status as America's top-producing carmaker employing the most U.S. hourly workers, Ford said, “Ford supports the Trump administration’s vision for advancing American innovation and manufacturing.”

Then, delivering some corporate shade, Ford added, “Had Secretary Duffy reached out before issuing his letter to the press, we would have been happy to share more details about Ford’s U.S. commitment.”

That was a sick burn, Sean, in case you didn't catch it. 

Free Yourself From Advertising Forever!

How Hershey Is Selling Fancy Chocolate to Gen Z

If you pay attention to Gen Z, and don't worry, I try not to, either, then you may have seen the rise of "little treat culture." Chocolate giant Hershey is all about this kind of "accessible premiumization." So says Dan Mohnshine, with the company, who has a lovely way with words.

The idea is to deliver elevated flavors and designs in small, affordable doses. Premium chocolate has been outpacing traditional options, growing "3x mainstream for the past three years," Mohnshine said. But astronomical price tags on top-tier artisanal chocolates leave a market opening. 

"There's an enormous price gap between the top tier and mainstream, and that presents an opportunity for accessible premium," Dan said. "75% of the Hershey portfolio is available for less than $4 and these new creme bars are no exception."

To launch the new Hershey Creme Bar and ensure it resonated with younger shoppers, Hershey teamed up with pop group KATSEYE. Now consumer reception is "exceeding our expectations," and Mohnshine says, "it's really caught fire, people are excited about it.”

Hershey isn't stopping at boring flavors, either. They're bringing high-end flavors like truffle and pink Himalayan salt. And they even debuted a melt-proof "Cadbury Clutch" purse at Fashion Week. Fancy!

Should You Check Your 401(k) Today?

👎️ 

Nope.

Poll of the Day: It’s World-Famous-575™ Time

Poll of the Day: AI, AI, AI

We asked: Do you agree with Ian Boccaccio of tax firm Ryan that concern over AI data centers is “a passing fad, and in two years we won’t have these issues with data centers."

You answered:

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Oh, sure. In two years we'll be worried about the collapse of Western civilization thanks to AI. So, technically, I guess, he's right. (260)
🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ I'm sorry to tell you that this sounds a lot like "let them eat cake." Except the cake is data centers. And in two years we might well have some guillotines to respond to Marie AI-ntoinette here. (138)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ Yes. So smart. So smart. (12)
410 Votes via @beehiiv polls

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